Staff Reports
The Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s will unfold amid small teams and individuals on trails, tracks, sidewalks and other paths throughout Bartholomew County on Sunday because of the COVID-19 pandemic. So organizers are avoiding one large gathering as in the past.
“This year’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s will be everywhere,” said Natalie Sutton, executive director, Alzheimer’s Association Greater Indiana Chapter. “The pandemic is changing how we walk, but it doesn’t change the reason we walk.
Time-honored components of the Walk to End Alzheimer’s are being replicated.
On walk day, an opening ceremony will feature local speakers and a presentation of Promise Flowers to honor the personal reasons participants join together to fight Alzheimer’s and all other dementia, all delivered to participants’ computers. A small group of Alzheimer’s Association staff and volunteers will create the iconic Promise Garden in a “view only” format from noon to 4 p.m. on walk day at Hamilton Community Center and Ice Arena to honor all those impacted by Alzheimer’s.
To enhance the participant experience leading up to the event and on Walk day, new features are being added to the Walk to End Alzheimer’s mobile app to create an opportunity for the community to connect.
Participants can use the app and new “Walk Mainstage’’ to track their steps and distance, follow a virtual Walk path, manage their Facebook fundraisers, and access information and resources from the Association and Walk sponsors to help individuals and families affected by the disease. A new audio track is available to encourage participants along the way and to congratulate them upon completion of their Walk.
